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Penny Pennington (Earth-616)
, | Relatives = | Universe = Earth-616 | BaseOfOperations = Korea | Gender = Male | Height = | Weight = | Eyes = | Hair = Black | UnusualFeatures = | Citizenship = American | MaritalStatus = | Occupation = Soldier | Education = | Origin = Human | PlaceOfBirth = | Creators = Hank Chapman; Robert Sale | First = War Combat Vol 1 5 | HistoryText = Penny P. Pennington was a highly intelligent, but physically weak, soldier in the United States Army during the both World War II and the Korean War. He frequently used his intelligence to help him in the field. He frequently worked with Henry "Combat" Casey. While original accounts suggested that Penny first met Combat during the Korean War , they actually also fought together during World War II . Combat and Penny frequently fought in Dog Company under the command of Captain Rocke . World War II In February of 1943, Combat and Penny were among troops who clashed with Erwin Rommel's Afrika Corps, while they managed to capture the forces Rommel managed to escape to Europe . On March 25, 1943, Combat and Penny were part of the 4th Infantry Division in Africa where they were tasked with clearing the path for General George Patton's 8th Tank Division by taking out enemy mines . During this time is also the earliest recorded instance where Combat and Penny worked with Dog Company, clashing with Nazi forces in Africa . On April 23, 1943, Combat and Penny were deployed with a group of soldiers to help liberate the town of Tunisia which was under Nazi control. They were briefly captured by a female Nazi operative named Gertrude, however when she was fatally wounded by her superiors she assisted them in escape and provided them with information to help their fellow soldiers destroy Nazi defenses and retake Tunisia . On June 10th of that year the pair stopped a Nazi supply convoy from reaching their forces along the shores of Italy . On February 1st 1944, Combat and Penny were re-stationed with the 7th (Hourglass) Infantry Division in the South Pacific, where they assisted in taking Kwajaelin Atoll from the Imperial Japanese Army . By May of 1944, Combat and Penny were back in Europe and saw action in Monte Cassino, Italy. Proving to be one of their stranger wartime adventures, they foiled a plot by a Nazi commander who used trained eagle to steal Allied secrets from couriers . There are two conflicting accounts of Combat and Penny's activities on June 6, 1944. In one account Combat Casey was deployed to the shores of France, without Penny, where he destroyed Nazi artillery cannons in advance of the D-Day invasion . Another account states that Combat and Penny were in action during the liberation of France, and succeeded in stealing Nazi plans from their headquarters . On the 15th of that month, Combat and Penny were transferred to the 27th Infantry (Empire) Division back out in the South Pacific, where they helped liberate the island of Saipan from Imperial Japanese forces . In July of that year, while fighting in Italy, Combat and Penny were captured by enemy forces, but were rescued by American PT boats and assisted them in destroying a Nazi fleet . Relocated to Normandy in August of 1944, the pair stopped Nazi soldiers from bringing supplies along the Cherbourg Peninsula . At some point in 1945, the pair were back in action in the South Pacific where they were part of Able Company's push to liberate Kuroi Riku from the Japanese and later secured Aru Atoll as well . Combat and Penny also helped American forces liberate Kubasuki Island , Akai Atoll with George Company , and Kagua Island from Japanese forces. Combat and Penny then began working exclusively with Dog Company during the remainder of the war, working with the unit to liberate Futsu Island and later rescuing Captain Rocke from enemy soldiers on an unspecified atoll . Dog Company also helped liberate Yoku atoll . Korean War During the Korean war Penny was captured by Chinese soldiers who tried to get information out of him. Despite his lack of physical strength, her refused to provide information under torture. After reviving from the latest round of torture, Penny woke to find that he was not alone. Tied next to him was his old wartime buddy Combat Casey who had also found himself captured. The pair managed to break free from their bonds when Penny tried reflecting the rays of the sun through the lenses of his glasses. The pair then sabotaged some Chinese artillery cannons before returning to base. The pay had then became inseparable during the remainder of the war. Penny frequently tried to educate Combat, and often used his knowledge to help them get out of tight situations. One of their earliest missions together was to stand guard at the edge of their camp and defend it from night raiders. After fighting off a communist force, Penny insisted on checking out the local wild flowers. This led to them accidentally stumbling upon a Chinese laboratory where germ warfare was being manufactured. The pair worked together to destroy the lab . In the summer of 1950, Combat and Penny were part of the 2nd Infantry Division and were instrumental in liberating Korean children being held hostage in the town of Pudong. In September of 1952, Combat and Penny were captured by the so-called Snake Lady of Sinyong who attempted to force them to help smuggle secret plans to gorilla soldiers in South Korea which she had hidden on fake snake skin wrappings around her snakes. The pair refused and were about to tossed into her snake pit when miraculously the parking break on a nearby jeep went out and rammed the Snake Lady and her minions into the pit instead . The pair then followed the snakes to the Snake Lady's former base and destroyed it with explosives . Combat and Penny were next assigned to cross enemy lines and recover civilian photographer Flash Finnegan. The pair rescued her from enemy troops and together they uncovered an enemy fuel dump hidden in a well and destroyed it. Sent with a troop into a mountainous region of Korea, Combat and Penny found themselves pinned down by enemy fire. The two climbed up a nearby mountain to destroy it . Later, when Combat is wounded in battle he is rushed back to base by Penny who saves his life with a blood transfusion. Later when they were captured by Chinese soldiers they are forced to give medical attention to their commanding officer, but Penny tricks them into thinking that Combat has a compatible blood type for transfusion, poisoning the leader and allowing them to escape . The pair were soon put on a guard duty for military engineers. When enemy soldiers attacked, Penny came up with the idea to launch nearby bee hives at the attacking soldiers sending them fleeing. Captured while on patrol, Combat and Penny refused to give away secrets. Penny used his knowledge of an upcoming eclipse to trick the superstitious soldiers into thinking he could control the sun and frightened them into letting him and Combat go . While on patrol, the pair located a hidden enemy artillery cannon hidden in a mountain and destroyed it . Later they uncovered a plot by Chinese soldiers using exploding radio control drone tanks. Using magnetic rocks that he collected prior to their capture, Penny causes the device to malfunction destroy the enemy troops . On their next assignment, Combat and Penny were ordered to cover their troops rear with a machine gun. When they were captured by enemy soldiers, Penny convinced them that he could verbally command the gun to fire. When an live round inside the hot barrel of the gun went off, the enemy soldiers believed him and immediately surrendered. While Combat was away on a solo mission, Penny found himself captured by enemy soldiers while out admiring flowers. Left in a room with a bucket of flaming fuel over his head, Penny broke his glasses in order to cut himself free and used the fuel to send flaming arrows out of his cell and blow up his captors, he was eventually rescued by his comrades. Put on patrol again, the pair discovered a massive troop concentration. Penny came up with the idea of capturing fireflies and use them to send a Semaphore signal to the troops back at base to bomb the area. Combat and Penny were once again captured while on duty, but were rescued once again by their friend, Flash Finnigan . On yet another patrol, the pair came across an enemy fuel depot and used the fuel there to destroy a Chinese bridge building operation . Once more ordered to cover the rear, Combat and Penny found themselves trapped in a cave thanks to an avalanche caused by the enemy. When the Chinese then tried to smother them with an exhaust pipe pushed through the snow, Penny plugged it up causing a backfire that blasted them free and killed their would-be killers. They were next captured by the so-called Panther Lady who attempted to feed them to her panther. However, this was the same panther who Penny saved days earlier from a bear trap. The creature then assisted them in slaying the Chinese soldiers who captured them and they took the Panther Lady into custody. Penny was next put on a solo job to pick up show girls that were going to put on a show for the troops by was ousted from the job by the self-proclaimed ladies man Sargent Pulaski, who put him on patrol duty. Pulaski's plan backfired when Penny came across the women as they were being stopped by a Chinese road patrol and rescued them. By the time Pulaski returned to base empty handed he missed the show and the opportunity to dance with the girls. Combat and Penny next managed to steal plans from an enemy courier, and escaped by rolling back to base in empty fuel drums. Although they succeeded in bringing the plans back to their superiors, they were dizzy enough from the ride to be mistaken as drunk and tossed in the stockade . Next Combat and Penny were assigned to transport a supply of C-Rations to the front line. However when they discovered an enemy operation in the works, they fashioned crude explosives out of the C-Ration cans and used them to decimate the enemy plan. Combat then joined Penny out on an expedition to capture butterflies. Captured by enemy soldiers who thought they were gathering plans for "botanical warfare", Penny tricks them into picking poison ivy allowing he and Combat to escape. Having bought into Sargent Pulaski's claims of being a ladies man, Penny hoped that his suprioer could teach him how to speak to women while both men were awarded 24 hour leave. Pulaski snubbed Penny, and Penny decided to secretly follow Pulaski into town and see how he works. However, Penny soon lost Pulaski after a series of encounters with women in distress, earning a kiss each time. Returning to base, Penny was disappointed at his "failure" unaware that Pulaski fell asleep in a movie theater. Captured once again, Combat and Penny were forced to dig a tunnel to their base. However, when Penny discovered that the cave was filled with firedamp gas, they fled leaving the Chinese soldiers to blast the rest of the way and blowing themselves up . Captured yet again, Combat and Penny found themselves tied to an enemy tank as human shields to discourage their fellow soldiers from shooting back. However they were freed by Combat's friend the Texan gunslinger known as Battle Brady, who had come to visit Combat while on leave. Penny was put on guard duty and was ambushed by Kaesong Katie and her band of female gorilla warriors. Noticing that they had an interest in American clothing, Penny later gathered up a bunch of womens garments and succeeded in using them to entice Katie and her minions to surrender. Combat and Penny were next assigned to clear out enemy soldiers hiding out in a nearby onion farm using a flame thrower. When their flame thrower ran out of fuel, Penny squeeze onion juice into the weapon which Combat sprayed into the faces of the enemy, forcing them to tearfully surrender . When Chinese gorilla soldier Kaesong Katie escaped captivity with stolen plans, Combat and Penny were sent to capture her. They manged to recover their plans and flee. Not long after, Combat and Penny were captured and placed in a prisoner of war camp with other captured soldiers. Put on the battle from with Sargent Pulaski, both men were horrified to find that the Chinese were sending waves of stray dogs with explosives tied to their tails at their foes. The pair of men were spared by a stray cat that Penny saved when the kitten made another wave of dogs chase it back to their captors. However they broke free thanks to Penny using the gunpowder from a grenade the Chinese neglected to confiscate him . While out on patrol again, Combat and Penny discover that the Chinese have built a massive tank to use against the United Nations. Stealing enemy uniforms the pair managed to sneak inside the massive tank and sabotage it before it could be used. Put on a solo assignment to transport supplies to the front lines, Penny was stopped by an enemy patrol. Unarmed, Penny defended himself with a fire extinguisher and succeeded in capturing Colonel Pu-Tang in the process. Combat and Penny went after Kaesong Katie after she once again succeeded in capturing secret plans. They were assisted in their recovery by a South Korean gorilla warrior who commanded a lion . By this time Combat's exploits became so popular they were adapted into a comic book . Combat and Penny were soon captured once again and placed in a prisoner of war camp again. This time they were imprisoned with the acrobat quartet the Martinelli brothers. Using their acrobatic skills the six men managed to escape and return to base. Penny became dismayed when Captain Stone issued a challenge to the soldiers on the camp to win as many medals as possible in order to win a trip back to the States to go on tour with a group of starlets from Hollywood and Broadway. With only his Medal of Good Conduct, Penny was dejected because Sargent Pulaski had the most medals on base. Adding insult to injury, Penny was assigned on another transport duty and accidentally crashed his truck while escaping enemy soldiers. Returning to base ashamed of himself, Penny was surprised to learn that the crash wiped out a massive enemy troop movement. Officials from other United Nations countries then awarded Penny with a series of medals which put him on top of the competition winning it over Sargent Pulaski. After returning from tour Penny was put on landmine duty with Combat, the pair learned about a plot by Chinese soldiers involving stolen farm animals that they use to set off mine fields. With this information they reset the weight triggers on their mines and led the enemy into a trap . Next they came to the aid of a group of escaped female prisoner, but found themselves captured soon thereafter, they were rescued in turn by the women they came to aid . While on leave, Combat and Penny were captured by Chinese gorilla soldiers who then steal their uniforms in order to steal supplies. Penny managed to rip the seat of his uniform pants so that the Chinese soldiers were easily spotted by the Military Police officers patrolling town where were quite anal about how soldiers presented themselves. While on a solo mission, Penny captured an enemy courier and exposed and foiled a plot by the Chinese to smuggle supplies without being spotted by night time bombers. The pair were captured by Kaesong Katie who had survived their previous encounter and sought to get back in her commanders good graces. She attempted to force Penny to act as a messenger, threatening Combat's life to force compliance. However, Penny managed to trick both sides into fighting each other by doctoring the notes into challenges due to his ability to speak and write in Chinese . Captured by enemy soldiers once again, Combat and Penny were freed thanks to a mole within the enemy ranks and were given information that helped their fellow troops wipe out the enemy advancement. Penny, still having to deal with Sargent Pulaski's boasting, showed the Sarge that he could win the favor of the women on base by studying a course on hair cutting . Later on, Combat and Penny assisted in the transport of blood plasma to soldiers in the field and destroyed yet another Chinese fuel dump in the process . Later as part of Baker Company, the pair helped liberate the town of Hanyan from Chinese control . The pair later were involved in a covert mission into North Korea where they helped dismantle a rifle manufacturing plant and freed the slave labourers, helping them escape back to the South . They later exposed Major Wing's attempt to use fake artillery cannons to keep American forces at bay , and later stopped raids on South Korean farmers . The pair next helped push back Chinese forces when low on ammo by electrifying barbed wire fences . Seeing combat in North Korea, the pair utilized an eagle to destroy enemy forces that have them pinned in a canyon . The pair later destroyed a communist supply bridge in the North, and when working with a commanding officer named Jack convinced him to trust his younger brother Bobby in combat . Eventually, Penny attempted to teach Combat to use his brains instead of brawn in battle. However when Penny was captured, Combat used both to free his buddy. Combat and Penny then reunited with Captain Rocke and Dog Company and assisted the unit for the remainder of the war. Their first recorded mission was when Combat, Penny, and a tank enthusiast named Buggsie used an enemy tank to attack enemy forces . They later assisted the unit in sabotaging enemy shells in order to get past artillery guns, then defended a Korean town from being burned down by communist forces . On a solo mission the pair managed to hold off enemy forces in an incapacitated tank. Back with Dog Company and in another clash they detonated a bridge to keep enemy forces from following, later destroying a dam the enemy built on a river to try and get away. During Christmas Eve that year, Penny witnessed a seeming Christmas miracle when his fellow soldier Georgie (who still had an unshaken belief in Santa Claus) was able to produce every gift his unit asked for . Captured and put in a prisoner of war camp, Combat and Penny managed to break out and divert a river to send an enemy invasion fleet using rafts to go off a cliff. Later they used weather balloons as a means of crossing over land mines to capture an enemy force they were after . They then came to the aid of another town that were being robbed by communist troops. Using sheep skins to disguise themselves, Combat, Penny and Dog Company capture the enemy forces in the act. Later thanks to training from Apache American solider Roanhorse, Combat and Penny were able to use smoke signals to warn Dog Company of an enemy attack . Combat later prevented Dog Company from being lured into a trap in the town of Kumchow set by communist forces. During an influential battle along the border between the North and South Korea, Combat and Penny discovered Major Mung's plans to build a giant dragon effigy to scare South Korean soldiers, and helped the South Koreans in constructing an even larger dragon against the one constructed by their communist foes . Later the pair were able to capture important plans from the North Korean army, using a K-9 dog to get the plans to Dog Company . Just days before cease fire that marked the official end of the Korean War, Combat and Penny found themselves captured by enemy forces and were prisoners of war. However they managed to escape and uncover an attempt by North Korea to ship supplies to guerrillas forces that were still active in the south. Eventually, Penny's childhood sweetheart Betty Corey arrived on base with her father the Colonel. Betty attempted to spend time with Penny even though her father disapproved of him. Colonel Corey assigned Sargent Pulaski with the duty of guarding his daughter, however Penny vindicated himself by rescuing both Pulaski and Betty when they were captured by gorilla soldiers . Not long after they destroyed the Red Poppy's opium supplies which were used to keep gorilla forces compliant. Back at base, Penny found himself once more snubbed for time with Betty when Sargent Pulaski ordered him to babysit her trouble making younger brother Dudley. However when Penny saved Dudley from enemy forces Colonel Corey assigned Pulaski with taking care of Dudley while Penny was allowed to take Betty to the dance being thrown on the base . Jealous of Penny's popularity due to his collection of pin-up girl photos, Pulaski assigned Penny and another soldier nicknamed "Peewee" to transport junk for disposal. On their way back to base they were captured by gorilla soldiers who had also captured Lola Lamour and a troupe of pin-up girls who came to Korea to entertain the troops. While they were all being transported to the gorilla's secret hideout, Penny left a trail for his fellow soldiers using the items in the girl's suitcases. They were eventually found and saved by Sargent Pulaski who was once more emasculated by Penny who was rewarded by Lola who posed in various outfits for him . Post-Korean War Combat and Penny in Korea for a time after the end of the war and worked as Military Police officers. Their only recorded mission on this detail, Combat and Penny stopped communist spies from sabotaging supply convoys . Penny's post war activities appear to show an end of his long partnership with Combat Casey, the reasons of which are as yet unanswered. Penny remained at an American base doing his duties until word that the United States was going to begin sending troops back home. Penny was looking forward to going back home with Colonel Smith's daughter Lucy, however Sargent Pulaski pulled rank and made it so that Penny would be stuck in Korea assisting with the deconstruction and scrapping of American military bases. However when Pulaski and Lucy were later captured by guerilla soldiers, Penny rescued them. When Colonel Smith ordered that Penny get to go home and Pulaski stay behind, Penny used his newfound good graces with the Colonel to convince him to let Pulaski return home as well, convincing Pulaski that Penny wasn actually a great guy and their rivalry was quickly quashed . However the trip back home was not without incident as Penny and Pulaski soon uncovered that Chinese spies had stowed away aboard their ship and were plotting an act of sabotage once arriving in the United States. Penny and Pulaski exposed and quashed the spies just as their ship arrived in San Francisco Bay . Upon his return home to the United States, Penny began training new recruits in the United States Army . | Powers = | Abilities = | Strength = | Weaknesses = Penny had poor eye sight and required corrective lenses. | Equipment = | Transportation = | Weapons = Penny had access to weapons used by member of the American Ground Infantry during the Korean War. | Notes = | Trivia = | Marvel = | Wikipedia = | Links = }} Category:WWII Characters Category:Korean War Characters